The Strategy
​Although Nepal is capable of producing the small-type anaerobic digesters it has insufficient materials and knowledge on large-scale bio-gas waste conversion plants which are capable of harnessing the agricultural or human waste of a large population for storage of biogas and further refinement for electricity or biofuel. My target export would focus on the large scale sector which is untapped in Nepal, The developing world is a prime target for this type of technology because usually it has a fast growing population with no infrastructure to support it, in countries such as Nepal and other developing nations this growth in population means a surplus of waste with no possibility of disposal. OMAFRA classifies this system as a centralized system, where material from multiple sources is hauled to the plant (Anaerobic, 2007). The anaerobic waste facilities would be a perfect fit for this emerging problem. Large scale plants have been created before and have been highly successful because of their sustainable attributes, the Canadian company for which I propose the contract for these plants be awarded to is Anaergia inc. with headquarters in Hamilton, ON. The company’s founder Dr. Andrew Benedek has been in the sustainable energy business for over 30 years and has created several multi million dollar companies. Anaergia is beginning to catch steam in the worldwide spectrum, it is responsible for several large scale bio waste conversion plants throughout the world including the largest anaerobic digester power plant in eastern Europe located in Szarvas, Hungary, the plant produces 4.2 MW of electricity, 4.1 MW of Heat and 90 800 tons of solid fertilizer per year. The inputs necessary for this are 45 000 Tons/year of commercial substrates (sewage) and 75 000 Tons/year of agricultural substrates.(Europe, n.d.) Szarvas is a town of 16 000 people which is the target size town for this project in Nepal.
​Nepal has over 3 million head of cattle and buffalo combined (Bajgain & Mendis, 2005). Nepal’s terrain region has the highest percentage of agricultural production along with beneficial climatic temperatures for this type of plant. Winter months in other regions could cause a decrease in gas production of plants because of colder temperatures(Bajgain & Mendis, 2005). For large-scale anaerobic digesters everything depends on the size of the facility, realistically in Nepal the aim would be in small to mid size towns with population size reaching a maximum of 5000 inhabitants. The transportation limitations would make the inflow and outflow of products very difficult with larger towns, as the production would exceed potential consumption locally. Ideally the export company would form relationships with large biogas companies in Nepal as well as with government agencies, which deal in biogas and renewable energy. These entities have existing relationships with potential suppliers of inputs and clients for outputs.
Benefits form sustainable energy plants such as anaerobic digesters are felt on a worldwide spectrum as well as on a national one. In Nepal we would see decrease in pollution of waterways and cleaner drinking water. The de-contamination would make the large resource of fresh water another booster for the Nepalese economy. Air quality and health would also improve as rates of other fuel sources (e.g. wood, coal) decline because of the cheaper alternative of biogas. Nepalese and Canadian jobs would be created on account of this initiative both directly, and indirectly through the manufacturing, construction, maintenance, and management of anaerobic digester sites. The relationship between Nepalese and Canadians may strengthen through such export projects leading to an increasing amount of foreign investment in the nation of Nepal. The country is prime for foreign investment as the economy is comparatively simple and stable, the country is inexpensive and the government is easily accessible. The export market for large scale anaerobic digesters is ripe because Nepal remains a largely agricultural country with a large amount of livestock and livestock waste (Rahman & Paatero, 2012). Major flaws in the Nepalese business spectrum for this category of export include but are not limited to it’s a lack of transport infrastructure and interconnectivity within the country as well as lack of qualified individuals to staff plants in rural areas versus urban areas.
​Anaergia operates in two ways, either a private contractor or investor will do the number crunching for a potential project and come to Anaergia with the findings and hire them to manufacture the desired plant .the 3rd party will then maintain and service the plant. The second option is for Anaergia to be the sole owner and operator of a project, they will evaluate the potential markets and custom design plants to fit their needs and capacities, they manufacture a large portion of the components in their operations so they can guarantee the quality of the process. The aim is for these components to be manufactured as locally as possible whether abroad or in Canada, it will depend on the locale of the project. The company has offices all over the world including their Asian office located in nearby Singapore. Anaergia is present in the whole process from raw waste to electricity production by combining the string of all it’s products together depending on the need of the locale (Steve Watzeck, personal communication). The most important and difficult areas to secure before a project of this scale may be initiated are securing local contracts for inputs (feedstock: i.e. Slaughterhouse waste, agricultural waste, human waste), and contracts for sale/management of outputs. Steve Watzeck indicated in a personal communication that the most integral part is to secure these contracts over the long-term (e.g. 10 years) instead of having yearly contracts; this is specially true in developing countries where a large investment may be made in a project but it deteriorates because lack of management in the succeeding years. Anaerobic digesters are an expensive piece of technology which have been implemented in mainly 1st world countries, the export is idealistic logistically in developing nations but is entirely possible. “Is large scale Biodigestor technology viable in Nepal, or is it a technology reserved for developed countries with the capital?” was a question posed to the Chief commercial officer of Anaergia Inc. by the writer of this report. Mr.Watzeck indicated that anaerobic technology is entirely viable in developing nations and is becoming widespread throughout that market. Although there are many things that must be in place such as sufficient knowledge and dedication on management and maintenance of these systems, experts must be available to aid in the day to day handling of waste power plants. In developing countries much effort must be made to monitor the use and misuse of the outputs of the plants (Steve Watzeck, personal communication) Funding for projects by Anaergia come solely from private funding at interest rates of 7-10% on large loans and up to 13% on small loans (under $1 million)(Steve Watzeck, personal communication). In developing nations many other options are possible. With the Nepal national subsidized biodigestor initiative the funding was provided in part by the federal government as well as a contribution from participating farmers but the project received an influx of funding from the world bank in the name of the Nepal Biogas program in the sum of $5 million USD. For larger projects such as the Anaergia the company can seek these external funding options in the form of grants, loans and investments. Anaergia being a Canadian company may also seek the financial aid of the Canadian government (Export development Canada) for funding and loans in international ventures Although exportation regulations are one of the relatively less complicated areas of logistics pertaining to export, they will pose some resistance as there is a long process. Exportations to Nepal from are of small scale but common because the country imports most resources and products. Canadian merchandise exports to Nepal are equivalent to 22 million a year (EDC, 2016). EDC (Export Development Canada) describes its expertise on the Nepalese exporting environment as having “Limited knowledge and experience in the market. We could consider providing support to Canadian companies planning on or currently doing business in the market”. The lack of knowledge can cause many barriers to exporting to the country but may also provide an opportunistic environment. The EDC has aided 13 Canadian companies to set up trade agreements with Nepal; they are also willing to help more companies such as Anaergia to succeed.